Egypt is very much desert, and the number of oases are smaller than many might imagine. There are 8 oasis communities interesting to a traveller, plus a handful of places where people do little but work and long for the day when they can return to their home town.

Getting to the oases is straightforward these days: There are good roads and plenty of public transportation that costs next to nothing compared with Western price levels.

Egyptian oases correspond fairly with the Hollywood / Disney - like image of an oasis, where sand dunes suddenly turn into lush palm groves with a fresh-water pond in the middle. Some of the oases have blurred borders, where the gardens and settlements in the outskirts are poor and ugly. Other oasis begin almost suddenly after you climb down into the bowl where water is naturally pumped up from the ground, and agriculture is possible.

And that is very much the true reason for the existence of Egypt's oases. Water is pressed up from underground water reservoirs, water which can be distributed through canals to allow extensive agriculture. In modern times, gazoline driven pumps are used for reservoirs without sufficient pressure.

Until a few decades ago, before the roads were built, the oases were quite isolated from the rest of the world. Most of the inhabitants never left the oasis through their entire lives. Culture, lifestylese, clothes and even language could be unique from oasis to oasis. Much of this diversity is disappearing these days, but still there is plenty left to intrigue visitors. Tourism has had a positive impact on the oases; the inhabitants have been taught that they possess something unique, so valuable that people from the other side of the world come to discover it.

So which are the best oases to visit, for anyone with limited time??
Here is my ranking, just remember that every oasis has its own attractions, so many other travellers would make a very different ranking.

Fayoum: Only two hours from Cairo by road, Fayoum is renowned for its year-round warm climate, numerous water wheels (introduced by the Ptolemies in the 3rd century) and lush agricultural land. Fayoum is not a true oasis since it depends on Nile water, not underground springs or wells: the ancient Bahr Yussef canal runs through the center of the city and irrigates the land. The name Fayoum originates from the hieroglyphic word Bayoum, which meant "the Sea," a reference to the large in land lake, Karoun. There are many pharaonic sites in the area; for example, a red granite obelisk of Senuseret I and the pyramid of Senuseret II at Lahun, the pyramid of Amenernhat III at Hawara, and the remains of the ancient city of Karanis, where you can camp and visit the site museum.

The New Valley Oases: The four New Valley oases are situated along a dead, prehistoric branch of the Nile and depend on springs and wells tapping water under the desert. Isolated from each other and from the rest of the outside world these oases have only been accessible to tourists since the 1980s.

Bahariya: Set in a depression covering over 2000 sq. km. Bahariya Oasis is surrounded by black hills made up of ferruginous quartzite and dolorite. Most of the villages and cultivated land can be viewed from the top of the 50-metre-high Jebel al-Mi'ysrah, together with the massive dunes which threaten to engulf some of the older settlements. Wildlife is plentiful, especially birds such as wheatears; crops(which only cover a small percentage of the total area) include dates, olives, apricots, rice and corn.

The White Desert: A trip to the White Desert is something that no visitor to the New Valley should miss. Travelers coming from Bahariya will cross through the Black Desert, passing the tiny oasis of El-Hayiz on the way. Bahariya and Farafra are separated by huge golden sand dunes which make a stunning photograph during the journey. Once through the al-Sillim Pass you enter the White Desert, a unique landscape of surreal wind-eroded rock formations which is particularly magical at sunrise or sunset.

Farafra: known as Ta-iht or the Land of the Cow in pharaonic times, is a single village. The most isolated of the New Valley Oases it is renowned for its strong traditions and piety. According to folklore the villagers once lost track of time and had to send a rider to Dakhla so they could hold the Friday prayers on the right day.

Dakhla: Dakhla Oasis is a collection of fourteen different settlements, dominated on its northern horizon by a wall of rose-colored rock. Fertile cultivated areas growing rice, peanuts and fruit are dotted between sand dunes along the roads from Farafra and Kharga in this area of outstanding natural beauty. The capital, Mut, named after the ancient goddess of the Theban Triad, houses the Museum of the Inheritance, a traditional house, with an intricate wooden combination lock. Rooms, with sculpted clay figures, are arranged to show different aspects of Dakhlan culture and family life.

Kharga: Kharga used to be the last but one stop on “The Forty Days Road”, the infamous slave-trade route between North Africa and the tropical south. Outside the main center is the Temple of Hibis, built on the site of an 18th dynasty settlement of Saites, Persians and Ptolemies. One of the few Persian monuments in Egypt, the 6th century BC temple is well-preserved with painted vultures and huge relief of Darius greeting Egyptian gods on the outer walls. Ten kilometres away, the Necropolis of al-Bagawat contains 263 mud-brick chapels with Coptic murals, including the Chapel of Peace with images of Adam and Eve and the Ark on its dome and the Chapel of the Exodus with frescoes of pharaonic troops pursuing the Jews, led by Moses, out of Egypt. Pharaonic monuments include the al-Ghuwaytah Temple which dates from 522 BC and the Temple of Amenebis.

Siwa: Siwa, the most inaccessible of all Egypt's oases until very recently, is also one of the most fascinating. On the edge of the Great Sand Sea, its rich history includes a visit from Alexander the Great to consult the Oracle of Amun in 331 BC. Siwans have their own culture and customs and they speak a Berber language, Siwi, rather than Arabic. Many women still wear traditional costumes and silver jewellery like those displayed in “The Traditional Siwan House” museum in the town centre. Siwa remains one of the best places to buy jewellery, rugs, baskets and traditional robes and head-dresses, decorated with antique coins.Near the Oracle is a ruined Temple of Amun and the famous Cleopatra Bath, a deep pool of bubbling water where you can bathe.

Wherever you stay, enjoy the tranquility of the Bedouin lifestyle, the date groves, pigeon towers and blue-washed mud houses. For adventure and excitement explore the majesty of the desert by camel or jeep safari, spend a night under the stars and take a morning dip in the hot springs. Let the night skies and the silent spaces create your own personal oasis -an inner peace to take back with you when you leave.